MELBOURNE, Australia — Fifth-seeded Angelique Kerber got ousted in the fourth round of the Australian Open by the woman who defeated Serena Williams at the same stage last year.
No. 19-seeded Ekaterina Makarova had a 7-5, 6-4 win in the opening match early today on Rod Laver Arena, taking out the highest seed to tumble so far at the season’s first major.
Makarova beat Williams in the fourth round in 2012 at Melbourne Park and went on to reach the quarterfinals, which remains her best result at a Grand Slam. Kerber and Makarova were two of only four women in 2012 to beat Williams, who lost only one match in the second half of last season as she collected titles at Wimbledon, the London Olympics, the U.S. Open and the WTA Championships.
“Seems like it was the same this year and last year. Unbelievable feeling,” Makarova said. “I really like to play here. The crowd is so perfect.”
In the first men’s match, fourth-seeded David Ferrer had a 6-2, 6-1, 6-4 win over No. 16 Kei Nishikori of Japan to reach the quarterfinals, where he could meet fellow Spaniard Nicolas Almagro.
Nishikori had won two of his previous three matches with Ferrer and was a quarterfinalist in Australia last year, but struggled with 65 unforced errors in the 2-hour, 10-minute match.
If Almagro beats No. 8 Janko Tipsaveric today, it would set up the first all-Spanish quarterfinal at the Australian Open since 2011, when Ferrer ended Rafael Nadal’s bid for a sequence of four consecutive major titles.
Kerber, a Wimbledon semifinalist last year, had beaten Makarova in their previous three matches and went in as favorite at Melbourne Park. She had trouble with her back, but said it didn’t affect the outcome of the match, adding that Makarova was capable going further in the tournament.
“I think if she played very well she can, yeah, beat also top players,” Kerber said.
The 24-year-old Makarova could meet fellow Russian, No. 2-ranked Maria Sharapova, in the quarterfinals, at the same stage they met last year. Sharapova can advance by beating playing Belgium’s Kirsten Flipkens today in the fourth round.
“Actually I really want to play against Maria because I lost here last year in the quarters and I play a lot of times against her last year,” Makarova said. “Now I’m pretty confident and I like my game.”
Another pair who met here last year played out a similar result on Saturday night, with No. 2-ranked Roger Federer knocking Bernard Tomic out of the tournament in straight sets to end Australia’s participation in either the men’s or women’s singles draws.
Federer gave the 20-year-old Aussie an instant reality check by breaking him in the very first game to set up a 6-4, 7-6 (5), 6-1 win.”
Federer will face Canadian Milos Raonic, who had 7-6 (4), 6-3, 6-4 win over Germany’s Philipp Kohlschreiber in a matchup of two big servers.
The third round ended in the early hours this morning, when No. 14-seeded Gilles Simon outlasted fellow Frenchman Gael Monfils, 6-4, 6-4, 4-6, 1-6, 8-6, in a match that finished at 12:32 a.m.
Both men needed treatment from the trainer during the, with Simon struggling to shake off soreness in his elbow and Monfils fighting fatigue.
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